One of my goals is to read more books for leisure, but it’s an interesting balance to make since my inner true crime junkie meshes well with my advocacy work and friendships with incarcerated people. Not only does it help to understand what transforms a person into someone who commits crimes, it also makes it easier for me to help them break the cycles of harming others in the ways they might had been harmed (usually during childhood).
I just finished reading Bonfire Bodies: The Shocking Story of Serial Killer Dennis Nilsen by Robert Brown yesterday and published my review to Goodreads:
It is often difficult to find good books that are respectful to the victims as they define a portrait of those who commit heinous crimes without sensationalising or glorifying the perpetrator’s actions. I feel this book fits the bill nicely. Another great thing about this book is that it helps connect the dots of Mr Nilsen’s childhood trauma with how he carried out his crimes in a way that doesn’t excuse his actions.
[Description of the image to the right: Cover of the book jacket – Bonfire Bodies: The Shocking Story of Serial Killer Dennis Nilsen by Robert Brown on a dark background with Mr Dennis Nilsen as photographed for his mugshot.]
I agree with other people who have reviewed this book and express that it reads a bit too much like fiction to feel completely accurate. After reading the epilogue, it can be assumed that the author did extensive research, including a thorough study of writings and recordings by Mr Nilsen.
Some of the dialogue is verbatim from Mr Nilsen’s home videos that I was able to find published on YouTube. The author likely filled in dialogue that might not have been accurate, but it makes the content easier to digest since these crimes were so bizarre and gruesome.
This book is a quick read, though I don’t recommend it be read entirely in one sitting. If you are planning to read this book, you will enjoy it if you begin with the understanding that it is written in a way that is intended for English speaking readers on both sides of the pond. That said, it does irk me that the author interchangeably uses American colloquialisms and terminology to describe places and things that are inherently British.
Japheth Grimm 